[RayX]

The typical life of a Li-Ion battery is something like 400 charge and discharge cycles.

So if you are fully using your battery everyday, a 1 to 2 year life is expected.

[m a d r a]

i don't think the battery life can depend on the number of charge/recharge cycles. i had my pismo battery die on me a few months ago. [probably about 2-3 years old]. but i use the pismo as my desktop machine. it's always plugged into the mains, except when i have to take the comp somewhere, in which case it's put to sleep and then immediately connected to the mains again when i get to my destination.

in these circumstances the battery has almost never been used, apart from keeping the comp 'alive' while sleeping between destinations, so even with two years 'on the clock' i felt pretty pissed off that the battery died, considering the pampered life it had led.

call me a cynic if you like but i suspect a bit of built in obsolesence might be going on here in order to get us to fork out for a new battery every couple of years.

i think there's a worrying trend developing with these 'smart' components which tell you they're dead and refuse to work anymore, even when in fact there may be a lot of use left in them. i've had similar battery problems with the sony infolithium batteries on my DV camera which can [apparently] be brought back to life with a bit of serious discharging and recharging. i've managed to get one back from 5mins usage after charge to about 40mins, using this technique.

similarly, the ink cartridges for my epson stylus C42 printer have a chip attached whereby the computer decides when the cartridge is empty and won't allow you to print anymore [even if there is in fact ink left in the cartridge].

perhaps manufacturers are trying to combat user thrift by including components which 'commit suicide' regularly enough to keep us dipping in our wallets?

[El Berserko]

I had been tracking my capacities on my aluminum 15 inch and I noticed it decreasing after every discharge (using it until sleep). I got the capacity down to 3208, and then I decided to stop using it until forced sleep. Last night I decided I would do a slow calibration of the battery. I set the brightness to one bar, processor reduced, sleep hard drives when possible, no airport or bluetooth, sound muted, and no devices connected. I also set it not to sleep or dim screen when idle. I unplugged it and let it run down. During this time I did absolutely nothing to the machine, I just let it idle. After it got to 7 minutes remaining, it just sat there for a good half hour still saying 7 minutes with the battery warning still on the screen. It then said "calculating" and jumped up to 7 hours and 35 minutes remaining and the warning went away! It spent the next 5 minutes slowing going back down to 1 minute, and finally went into sleep. Total, it lasted 3 hours and 41 minutes doing absolutely nothing with everything down or off in the settings. I closed the lid and plugged it in and let it charge, not using it for at least 18 hours. The capacity now has jumped up from 3208, to 3668. Not bad, but still would be nice to get in the 4000s. It is amazing what a proper calibration can do.

[wy4tt]

yep. i've been doing something similar with mine over the past two weeks. mine had been decreasing in capacity as well. but that was when i was using it sporadically all day long. lately, i've been writing papers. dim screen light, no bluetooth, no airport, etc. my capacity went from 2900 up to over 3600 over the past 3 charges. my albook 15 is about a month old. hopefully, it will continue to creep up.

[tobyg]

I was just running off of battery for a while, testing some things out... so my battery is currently not at full charge. But here is my info..

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=6429,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=5122," Voltage"=12254,"Flags"=1090519047})

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=6429,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=5220," Voltage"=12254,"Flags"=1090519047})

Seems very good to me!

I'm thinking about taking the battery out and putting it in a drawer until I need it. My Dell battery is shot... I leave it on 24/7 and now it only runs for about 30 minutes on battery.

Again, this is a Rev A 17" PB.

[gwright]

I recently got a replacement battery for my 1.25GHz Al, after my old one decided to go mad and report a capacity of 2.8Ahr (even after recalibration). They didn't want to replace it at first when it was 3.4Ahr (I phoned 3 times), but when it flew down to 2.8 I decided I'd had enough

Anyway, the new one is 4.4Ahr before calibration (currently calibrating it). I'm doing the slow drain calibration method so hopefully this battery should go up to about 4.5-4.6Ahr capacity with any luck. It's currently drawing approx 700milliamps of current (screen turned off, ae off, bt off, keyboard lighting off, hard disc spin down on, reduced cpu mode), and it's going to take about 5.5 hours to drain from 100%

George

[waz]

Originally posted by Bruck:
Please post your capacity #'s. [/B]

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=160,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=160,"Vo ltage"=16425,"Flags"=838860805})

Getting ready to install my new battery, that one lasts about 8 min.

[Chemmy]

Yay. I just got a replacement battery for my 15" that is reporting Capacity=4535.

[jgcan]

"Capacity"=5188,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=5136 ,"$

PB 17" 1.33

[Chuckmcd]

I thought my battery may be dying I guess this confirms it:

| | | | "IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=316,"Amperage"=1200,"Curren$

[schalliol]

Originally posted by Chuckmcd:
I thought my battery may be dying I guess this confirms it:

| | | | "IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=316,"Amperage"=1200,"Curren$

Looks like it, expand your terminal window and do the sleeping calibration noted here earlier and see if you have any change.

[Chuckmcd]

Originally posted by schalliol:
Looks like it, expand your terminal window and do the sleeping calibration noted here earlier and see if you have any change.

I'll try it tonight, but unfortunately I need this machine for the work I do...

What difference does the "slow" drain on the battery make?

[schalliol]

Originally posted by Chuckmcd:
I'll try it tonight, but unfortunately I need this machine for the work I do...

What difference does the "slow" drain on the battery make?

Sorry, what I meant was what is referred to earlier, which is to have the unit say charged, unplug and work until it shuts itself off and then plug in and don't wake up until for 8+ hours. So, if you're working a fairly normal schedule, run the unit when you're done with work and before going to bed and let it power off (should go pretty quickly w/ those numbers). Then close the lid (well, you don't have to close, just don't wake) and plug in until the morning.

The ultimate answer is probably that you need a new battery, but it might help.

[tramahound]

anybody know where to get a replacement battery for a tibook 400mhz rev A? I thought I found one, but it was for the aluminum 15.2 inch model. i was told i could get a third party one, but didn't think that'd be as good. my battery is shot. doesn't last beyond 45 minutes ever since 10.2.8. go figure huh?

[schalliol]

Originally posted by tramahound:
anybody know where to get a replacement battery for a tibook 400mhz rev A? I thought I found one, but it was for the aluminum 15.2 inch model. i was told i could get a third party one, but didn't think that'd be as good. my battery is shot. doesn't last beyond 45 minutes ever since 10.2.8. go figure huh?

My understanding is that they all work and you should buy the one sold with the last edition Ti Book (mine below). You should get better performance with it, by far. NewerTech sells a slightly larger one too. I won't promise, but I'm pretty sure it will.

[RooneyX]

Rev A 17" PB.

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4994,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4969," Voltage"=12$

9 months old. It's almost always plugged in.

[Andrman]

"Capacity"=4279,"Amperage"=129,"Current"=426

Looks like I'm alright ;-)

15" TiBook 1Ghz here

[Chuckmcd]

Originally posted by tramahound:
anybody know where to get a replacement battery for a tibook 400mhz rev A? I thought I found one, but it was for the aluminum 15.2 inch model. i was told i could get a third party one, but didn't think that'd be as good. my battery is shot. doesn't last beyond 45 minutes ever since 10.2.8. go figure huh?

Check on the Apple store, under accessories... they have batteries listed for the 15 inch TI Books.

[tramahound]

I was told by a rep very sternly that the new Aluminum batteries did not fit in my old Titanium model since the latch mechinism was very different. I believe the Al has a twisting screw type lock while my Ti simply has a spring loaded sliding switch. Correct?

[slffl]

17" PB Rev A May '03

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4770,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4767," Voltage"=12527,"Flags"=1090519045})

[Crusoe]

I just got a refurbished Rev A 17" saturday, out of the box the battery was completely empty. After charging it up mine reads:

Capacity"=6664,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=6655,"Vol tage"=12478,"Flags"=1090520069

I'm guessing when I let it run down and back up it'll re-adjust to 5550ish. If it doesn't I'll be happily surprised.

[schalliol]

That would be amazing if it stayed up there!

[Crusoe]

Originally posted by schalliol:
That would be amazing if it stayed up there!

I ran it down to 0 last night but it went from somewhere around 17% to 0 in a second (I'm not sure where it was). After recharging I still get 6664 for capacity.

Anyone have suggestions how to get my battery to read correctly and not "skip" 15%.

Rev A 17" refurb from Apple. I got it 2 weeks ago.

Edit: forgot to note, I watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail 1:30 minutes with BT, AP on and the screen at 3/4, after that I used it for about 40 minutes before it dropped to 0. So battery life is pretty good.

[Jawbreaker]

Rev. A 12":
"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4115,"Amperage"=1324,"Current"=3926," Voltage"=11683,"Flags"=4})

The menu bar claims that means 3:11. Thing is that the computer puts itself to sleep whenever the battery reaches around 50%, and without any sort of warning. Anyone have a suggestion on what do do, or do I just need to bite the bullet and buy a new battery?

[schalliol]

Originally posted by Jawbreaker:
Rev. A 12":
"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4115,"Amperage"=1324,"Current"=3926," Voltage"=11683,"Flags"=4})

The menu bar claims that means 3:11. Thing is that the computer puts itself to sleep whenever the battery reaches around 50%, and without any sort of warning. Anyone have a suggestion on what do do, or do I just need to bite the bullet and buy a new battery?

I would do a battery calibration as described in this thread, it sounds like the computer thinks it has more battery than it actually does. However 50% off is pretty huge, so it could be something els, but it would be good to rule that out.

[nobitacu]

My current is: 4585mAh
My Max is: 4608mAh
Volts: 12.483
Amps: 1.200


Ming

[shabbasuraj]

well I just got a RevC 12" PB and my battery readout is

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4400,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4400," Voltage"=12530,"Flags"=838860805})

(and 'no' this thread will not die)

[Babar]

Just got my new 15'' 1,5ghz. I have 4538, iBatt tells me that I have the best capacity ever seen for my model hehe.

[rag on a muffin]

mine is 4187 on a 12" look at sig.

[8minute]

I have a 3 week old 12" Rev C and the reading is:

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4523,"Amperage"=1049,"Current"=3918," Voltage"=11904,"Flags"=4})

[Michel_80]

Why is Apple telling us to deplete batteries? It's clearly bad for Li-Ion. Naybe they are making money of suckers that do it.

[TommyLeeRoth]

This might be a bit OT, but my new 12" arrives on Monday and I was wondering what I should do with the battery when it arrives. Am I supposed to give it a good charge first or just go ahead and use it?

[blase]

IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=3539,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=3523," Voltage"=12527,"Flags"=838860805})

Miserable, and I was complaining about this battery to Apple not more than 5 months after I got it...nada help from them.

12" Rev A

[d.fine]

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4198,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4179," Voltage"=12482,"$

this might have been said before, but you can get iBatt handy little app will show you capacity, voltage and all that without having to start Terminal and typing that command ... just a hint.

it looks like this :

[Lancer409]

My PB 12 shows the following...

IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4569,"Amperage"=1200,"Curren$

that's all it shows .. then a bunch of |||'s .. instead of a whole line .. do i need to unplug, or is something screwy?

Originally posted by Bruck:
go to terminal (located in your appications>utilities folder)


and run the following command

" ioreg -l | grep -i IOBatteryInfo"

the response will look like this

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4144,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=160,"V oltage"=11431,"Flags"=1090519175})

the flags will equal a regular # like 4, if it is not plugged into the wall.

A "good" number in my opinion is from 4000 to 4500 i beleive. I have seen someone get 4515. I got 4400 when i first put the battery in.

I just reset my power management info and am fully charging it for the first time. My current readout is 4.144. I am happy with this.

Please post your capacity #'s.

[Lancer409]

Originally posted by d.fine:
"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4198,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4179," Voltage"=12482,"$

this might have been said before, but you can get iBatt handy little app will show you capacity, voltage and all that without having to start Terminal and typing that command ... just a hint.

it looks like this :

Great program =) i wouldnt pay 15 bux for it, but if it had a menubar battery replacement, i'd think about it. i wonder what widgets will come with tiger and what people are going to build. i liked the battery widgets for konfabulator .. but man .. after candybar, pixadex, shapeshifter, on top of the laptop and case ... oh yeah .. and i gotta pay off applecare soon =/ .. lol .. i dont think i'll be getting konfab =)

[chabig]

Originally posted by Lancer409:
My PB 12 shows the following...

IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4569,"Amperage"=1200,"Curren$

that's all it shows .. then a bunch of |||'s .. instead of a whole line .. do i need to unplug, or is something screwy?

Just make your terminal window wider, then run that command again.

By the way, here' my 12" Rev C Powerbook:

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4647,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4626," Voltage"=12334,"Flags"=4})

Chris

[idyll]

One year and 3 month old 12" @ 4174.

Not bad!

[Lancer409]

in that case ...

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4569,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4522," Voltage"=12525,"Flags"=838860805})

any tips on how to keep battery in tip top shape? mine is about two months old .. i wanna keep it that way .. lol

[KarimL]

"IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4511,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=3632," Voltage"=12376,"Flags"=838860807})

For my 12 inch. I've had it for a week or two so far. I usually use it plugged in while it's full charged. Does doing that use the battery at all, even?

[JBgrim]

One day old PB 15"

IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=4412,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=4374," Voltage"=12470,"Flags"=1090519045})

[cschmelz]

| | | | "IOBatteryInfo" = ({"Capacity"=3419,"Amperage"=1704,"Curren$


G4 Titanium from January 2003, 1ghz with original battery!

[Todd Parker]

4400 rev c 12''

[anonx]

If anyone is interested, I wrote a small program to show the current battery capacity, etc (the same info as shown in the terminal.) I made this before I knew about iBatt, but unlike the alternative, this one is free. Let me know if anyone wants a copy and I can post a link.

Here's a screen shot:

http://anonx.spymac.net/package/capacityshot.jpg

[gsxrboy]

4422 on a 15" 1.5 a month and a bit old.

[d.fine]

Originally posted by anonx:
If anyone is interested, I wrote a small program to show the current battery capacity, etc (the same info as shown in the terminal.) I made this before I knew about iBatt, but unlike the alternative, this one is free. Let me know if anyone wants a copy and I can post a link.

Here's a screen shot:

http://anonx.spymac.net/package/capacityshot.jpg

I'll give it a try

[AgBlue]

New Powerbook G4 1.5ghz 15in purchased when first announced in April.

Capacity"=4310,"Amperage"=1200,"Current"=3415,"Vol tage"=12416,"Flags"=1090519047

[anonx]

Originally posted by d.fine:
I'll give it a try

Here's a link...

http://anonx.spymac.net/package/CapacityMeterNR2.zip

If anyone finds bugs or you just want a feature that is not implemented, just shoot me an e-mail or reply to this thread.

[Ryan1524]

very nice. thx.

[d.fine]

Originally posted by anonx:
Here's a link...

http://anonx.spymac.net/package/CapacityMeterNR2.zip

If anyone finds bugs or you just want a feature that is not implemented, just shoot me an e-mail or reply to this thread.

Thx !! Looks good !